As Africa Malaria Day 2007 approached, AllAfrica talked to Robin Slatter, business development manager for global vector control at Sumitomo Chemical, which is manufacturing long-lasting bed nets in Tanzania.
How do you quantify the toll malaria takes on society?
It’s a very sad and long term situation – for a disease that probably is quite controllable. Various figures say three to five million people are affected. And you’ll see estimates of the number of deaths caused by malaria that range between one and three million people annually, depending on which journal you tend to read. Malaria is obviously hugely important in those terms and, also, in economic terms. We see various numbers quoted about the impact on Africa's economy – as much as U.S. $12 billion in GDP per year. So there is both a human and a monetary impact of this disease. I am glad that it is really getting some serious attention now.
Why do you think that is?
It is a very good question. Malaria has always had attention to a limited extent, but it has not always been sustained. A few years ago there was quite an emphasis on indoor residual spraying [coating the inner walls of residences with insecticidal chemicals]. I think what possibly has changed now is that we've got some more tools. Long-lasting bed nets are a very effective tool, and when they are used in the right circumstances, in combination with indoor residual spraying, they become even more useful. And we've got some good drugs now. We have the tools to do the job, and so perhaps that is inspiring some improvement in aid donation.
But, as you say, there was a burst of attention around indoor spraying, rather than using chemicals more indiscriminately. Then the global health focus moved on to something else. What do you think are the elements that need to be assembled to make malaria a more sustained, long-lasting focus?
If we look at Africa, in particular, it has traditionally had quite a low profile. Living in the United States, now, I notice that Africa isn't covered often in journals and newspapers. There has been little public awareness. That has changed somewhat. I think the Internet is part of that and, indeed, your own organization is getting the word out. To so many people, Africa seems such a long, long way away, especially when we couldn't see the images and the news stories. Telling the story is important.
I think what really is going to change the situation over the long term, though, is success. We are already beginning to see it; we are hearing anecdotal stories. I am very interested in getting more information on malaria reduction in areas where we have these big programs in place, because it should be happening. We are getting some figures back – but not enough at the moment. I think success will breed success, especially if that story gets told.
I think the other thing to remember is that Africa is a huge, huge continent. Africa is not one country, it is more than 50 countries, and at least 40 of those are involved in malaria control. So you can fix it in one country and you've got another 39 to deal with. So successes have to be achieved in many places..
What do you think is the relative role of public initiatives and private enterprises? Does there have to be collaboration?
I wouldn't necessarily put it in the specific terms of public and private partnerships. I just think partnerships, in general, are needed to tackle the problem. I don't think any one organization can do it. We are beginning to see more and more organizations are getting involved, both private and public. I think we will begin to see those dividends paying off, if the evidence is not there already.
Talk a little about Sumitomo’s involvement. As a global chemical company, how is it involved in malaria?
Sumitomo has a history of developing new insecticides. Many of those are used for insect control, including vector control [control of disease-carrying insects], so there is some history there. Malaria is such an important issue and Sumitomo Chemical has seen malaria control as a corporate social responsibility project, through the Olyset Project, in particular.
Can you say what the Olyset Project is?
The Olyset Project is the development of the Olyset net, which is an insecticide-treated bed net that lasts at least 5 years. Olyset nets were the first to be recommended through the World Health Organization’s pesticide evaluation scheme. Our intent was to make Olyset nets available to as many people as possible in malaria regions. That encompasses a number of aspects, one of which is to increase our production hugely, which we’ve done over the last couple of years. We are now up to at least 20 million nets per year, and we are looking to expand on that further this year. But also we have taken a commitment to look at how we can help Africa, not only in terms of supplying the nets but also in terms of local improvement in the economy and in people’s general well being. That has taken the form of producing our nets in Africa – in Tanzania. We’ve had production in Tanzania since 2003. And this year we are planning on opening a brand new factory there, which will further expand our local production.
What are the projections of how many nets are needed?
That is a very good question. There are not precise figures. You see various numbers floated around, from 60 to 80 million to 90 million. It’s very difficult to get a precise number quite frankly, but it’s somewhere in that order.
There’s still a need, still a shortfall then?
Yes, we are looking to expand our production further. And two other companies have secured WHO approval or recommendation for their nets. But, as I say, getting a precise number of nets needed is a challenge. Once we can get that, it will certainly be helpful. At the moment, that’s a little bit of a gray area.
You talked about this as being a part of Sumitomo’s corporate responsibility commitments. Your job is business development. Does the company profit from the sale of nets; how does that work?
We’ve minimized our profits. We’re supplying nets at the lowest cost to the market, and we are investing substantially in production, so our profitability is very, very low on this product – and what we are making is being plowed back into new production. The site in Tanzania is certainly going to be an impressive facility. It was a completely flat field; now there are buildings, electricity, and water. We’ve had considerable help from the Tanzanian government and our partners in Tanzania. It’s going to be an impressive state-of- the-art bed net production facility.
Why is it important for Africa to have a production facility on the continent?
Even if you just take it at the very local level, we are looking to employ around 2,000 employees. On that basis alone, I think it’s worthwhile. Obviously, there’s some logistic benefit from having your production locally. But, as I say, Africa is such a huge continent that manufacturing in east Africa and having to supply west Africa is not as easy as it might seem when you look at it on the surface.
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You told me earlier that your father had had malaria and that it made an impression on you?
Yes, he got quite ill. He’s no longer with us, but he was very bad at one stage. I think it was in north Africa he got it, in the second world war, and the story was that he was delirious and was walking into the sea, and would have probably drowned if it hadn’t been for some local people who saved him. So it always stuck with me.
Do you derive personal satisfaction out of involvement with this particular project?
What gives me greatest pleasure is when I go to Africa and we visit where our nets have been distributed. We talk to the householders and they say how wonderful it is to get a good night sleep, how wonderful that their children are no longer getting malaria. Their children are healthy, they’re learning better at school, because they don’t have the lack-of- sleep issue, being bitten by mosquitoes every night, and because they aren’t ill with malaria as often. That’s what really inspires me.
In that context, should telling the stories, as you mentioned earlier, focus on individual experiences?
I think there is two-fold information required here. One is that we need to start seeing malaria reduction figures, good data showing up, because it’s happening. Secondly, the thing that really gets to people is seeing the effects of malaria reduction on an individual family. The impact of getting rid of malaria on their lives – it’s just life changing. It allows them to do so much more and to focus on living rather than just surviving.
